Crunch Time: Breaking down Texas’ third-down and red-zone performance vs. Mississippi State

In their first SEC victory, the Longhorns did enough to win but did they execute every area of the game? Let’s check out the performance on third downs and in the red zone.

The then-No. 1 Texas Longhorns gutted out a 22-point victory on Saturday in Austin against the Mississippi State Bulldogs, a sentence that is hard to comprehend without watching the game. After a slow first three quarters, the Longhorns were able to turn up the gas in the final frame and collect their first SEC victory.

Perhaps more than people expected, Texas struggled. A well-devised game plan from Mississippi State kept the Longhorn offense off the field and forced them into sloppy mistakes when given a chance. However, thanks to 21 points in the final 15:09, Texas was able to pull away.

In this week’s edition of Crunch Time, we’ll analyze whether Texas’ performance on third downs and in the red zone, helped or hurt more on Saturday.

Third downs

5-of-12 (41.7 percent)

Texas converted 5-of-12 (41.7 percent) third downs, the second lowest conversion rate in the early season. Against the Bulldogs, the recipe for failure was sloppy play combined with third and distance.

The Longhorns had four third-down penalties and faced an average distance to go of 7.8 yards. They also had a drop and turnover on third down.

The first half in particular gave Texas trouble.

Running back Jaydon Blue coughed up the ball on the first third down that Texas faced on its second drive just outside the red zone. While the fumble obviously hurts, it appeared as though Blue was going to be well short of the yardage needed to move the chains on the 3rd and 1.

The next two third downs were similar for the Horns. Instead of facing 3rd and 3, a second-down holding penalty and a sack created a 3rd and 22. In this case, poor execution doomed Texas.

On the next drive, Texas once again faced third and distance with a 3rd and 9 from its own 38-yard line. Manning found wide receiver Johntay Cook, a sure-handed route runner who was unable to corral the long pass. Not would Cook have had enough yards for the first down, but he would have scored. Another instance of sloppy play yielding poor results.

Things turned around for Texas on the next drive. While the issue of creating third and distance would remain, Manning and crew converted this time. On 3rd and 8, Blue slipped out of the backfield and found empty space for Manning’s pass, doing an excellent job of settling down and giving Manning a big target to hit. In addition, Blue knew how much he needed for the first down and attacked the yard to gain.

The momentum on third down unfortunately ran into another roadblock. Blue was able to find a nice hole on 3rd and 6, which gave him enough room to move the chains. A holding penalty brought the play back.

Luckily, it did not deter the drive altogether. On the next play, now facing 3rd and 9, Manning stood in the pocket and hit wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr for a 49-yard touchdown.

A quick spell during halftime did not immediately lead to an improved performance on third down. Facing 3rd and 3, tight end Gunnar Helm false started. Facing 3rd and 8, Texas converted with a 23-yard gain to wide receiver Isaiah Bond. Unfortunately, it was called back for holding by Helm and the drive stalled.

It wasn’t until Texas faced two 3rd and 1s, that the offense strung a couple of conversions together. On the first play, freshman running back Jerrick Gibson took an inside handoff for a two-yard gain. A couple plays later, Manning snuck the ball into the end zone on 3rd and goal for a score.

With 10 minutes left in the game, a similar sequence to that of the second quarter occurred where Texas faced a third and short, committed a penalty, then scored on the third and long. In this case, DeAndre Moor Jr was called for holding before catching a 27-yard touchdown pass on the next play.

All in all, Texas did not perform well on third down. Four penalties is not going to cut it against a higher-quality opponent, especially when you add in a turnover and dropped touchdown.

Last season, the Longhorns finished 70th in the country on third down with a conversion rate of 38.4 percent. Through five games, the offense is 11th in the country with a third-down conversion rate of 52.5 percent.

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Red zone

Four attempts, three touchdowns, one fumble

On the day, Texas converted four red zone trips into 21 points. While things didn’t move smoothly on every play in the final 20, Sarkisian and company were able to get the job done.

The first red-zone trip ended poorly, as Blue coughed up the ball on the Mississippi State 20.

However, things turned around.

The second red-zone drive for Texas showcased two creative plays. On the first play, Sarkisian dialed up a tight end slip screen to Helm. Manning faked a handoff to Blue, giving the defense a play action look. After a few seconds, Manning hit Helm. While the play was not successful, it does give the defense a lot to think about.

The screen play also set up the next play, a 20-yard gain to Moore Jr. On the play, Sarkisian used a fake screen flood concept to force the Miss State secondary players into a precarious position where they were forced to leave something open.

With the ball on the right hash, Sarkisian motions Helm from his trips left position into the flat, a move that appears to set him up as the lead blocker in another screen, a deliberate look given that Blue immediately runs a swing pattern.

Moore Jr takes a blocking posture before slipping into a wheel route that is wide open given the attention that Matthew Golden drew on his post route.

There simply aren’t enough defenders to guard this play. With three options to choose from, Manning allowed the play to develop and present a wide open option. In this case, it was Moore. He went out of bounds at the one yard line where Blue would punch it in.

The next red-zone drive for Texas didn’t come until the last minute of the third quarter. Thanks to a 26-yard scramble by Manning, Texas was set up at the Mississippi State 1-yard line.

While Texas punched it in, the offense looked somewhat disheveled trying to punch it in.

Sarkisian once again opted to shy away from Gibson as the red-zone workhorse, a trend present throughout the entire game on Saturday. After averaging over 10 carries per game in the first four matchups, Gibson saw only four carries against Mississippi State. This is only further complicated by the lack of depth at running back and the decision to bench Blue after two fumbles.

After Wisner was stopped short on first down, Sarkisian dialed up back-to-back quarterbacks sneaks with Manning. While it appeared that Manning may have crossed the plane on second down, he had stood up and regrouped before the officials could assess where he was located in proximity to the endzone.

Sarkisian stated, “I think he got in on his first sneak, but he got up too early so the refs couldn’t see where he was” in the scrum.

A ref actually came over to Sarkisian and told him to “remind Arch to stay on the ground so we can see where he’s at.”

Manning was able to find pay dirt on third down, extending the Texas lead to 21-6.

The remaining red-zone drive was short lived. Facing third and 9, Moore Jr was once again get involved in crunch time, catching a touchdown pass for 27 yards a play after being called for holding and bringing the Longhorns out of the red zone.

With a bye week before the Red River Rivalry game, expect Sarkisian and company to add in some wrinkles to ensure the offense ends drives in the end zone.

For the season, Texas has scored on 25-of-27 (92.5 percent) red-zone possession, which is 32nd nationally. Last year, the Longhorns finished 87th nationally with a red-zone conversion rate of 80.3 percent. Texas’ red-zone touchdown rate has dramatically improved since last year. Currently sitting at 88.9 percent, this slots well above last year’s touchdown rate of 50.8 percent. Currently, Texas is second in the nation in red-zone touchdowns with 24 and are tied for fifth in red zone rushing touchdowns and first overall in red-zone passing touchdowns.